A joint call to engage with the Japanese government regarding its newly adopted business and human rights guidelines

Earlier this year, the government of Japan published draft guidelines to track and prevent human rights violations in company supply chains for public comments. Together with the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, we submitted joint comments and recommendations.

Unfortunately, the final guidelines do not appear to have meaningfully integrated or responded to comments submitted during the consultation period.

Together with the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre, the Center for Alliance of Labor and Human Rights (CENTRAL), Human Rights Now and Human Rights Watch, we urge the Japanese government to review the public comments submitted on the guidelines and to undertake additional consultations to ensure that they align with international standards and cover human rights responsibilities. We further request that any future process related to the guidelines, including monitoring and reviewing their implementation, be fully transparent and include participation from civil society organisations and affected communities.